Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Candor is the perfect place to live - teenagers respecting their elders and never talking back to their parents. Everyone is happy and kind and good, especially the model kid Oscar Banks. He has to be, since he's the son of the founder of Candor. But, Oscar hides behind the persona of the perfect son and leads a double life - you see he knows about the messages that brainwash all the teens (and their parents sometimes too). He's secretly been creating his own messages to fight the brainwashing - he's been in control for a while now. But, when a new girl comes to town with spunk and personality, he might not be able to control everything anymore.

Things I Liked:
It was definitely an interesting and near the end an exciting read. I love the concept of someone creating a "perfect" town where everyone conforms to certain ideas and the teenagers are all well-behaved. Nothing like a bit of mind-control to make you cling to your independence and choices. I liked the characters, though I think I might have liked Mandi more than I did Nia. I wasn't always rooting for Oscar, since sometimes he seemed almost as manipulative as his dad, but I liked his choices better than his dad's. The ending definitely was perfect for the book, if not exactly wonderful. This is one that will keep you thinking about it for days afterward, imagining what this place would be like and shuddering at Oscar's father. I thought this quote was really interesting too:

"Sometimes it's nice to do what the Messages say. It's like sinking into a warm bath, eyes shut, arms floating, and letting the water cover my face. I don't have to breathe until someone tells me to." p 51

Things I Didn't Like:
The writing and the story near the beginning did not grab me. I felt a little put off by the style - it was sparse and plain. Also, it was a bit boring at first. But, it definitely picked up. Oscar started to annoy me with how callous he was about girls - perhaps an accurate portrayal of some teenage boys, but still annoying. Read-alikes:Unwind by Neal ShustermanThe Giver and Messenger by Lois LowryUglies series by Scott WesterfeldBOOK CONTENT RATINGS:s-factor: !@
some, but not too muchmrg-factor: XX
mild, but ubiquitous (it felt like)v-factor: ->
some disturbing images, but nothing graphicOverall rating: ****

What scares you the most about dystopian books?

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